Assessing Student Achievement

Many of you have asked for a way to assess student progress in Sing ‘n Speak Spanish. I am thrilled to announce that assessment exams for Year 1B, Year 2, and Year 3 Spanish are now available. Assessment for the higher levels is under development.

What are the exams like?
For each course, there is a series of exams - one per chapter (or for a set of two or three chapters in some cases). Each exam has three parts. A word-matching part shows how well students have mastered the lesson vocabulary. In a fill-in-the-blank section, students choose words from a word list and demonstrate proficiency in the use of vocabulary in the context of a sentence. A final multiple-choice section shows how well students have learned sentence structure and grammar concepts.

Who should use these exams?
Assessment is a double-edge sword. On the one hand, we want students to learn Spanish for the love of it. On the other hand, our curriculum is used in a number of schools where students need to receive a grade. Furthermore, teachers and parents need to have some measure of how well students are learning.

I don’t recommend assessment for very young students, as doing poorly on an exam can be disheartening. Assessment is appropriate only if students are mature enough to read and write and can understand basic grammar concepts. Teachers should use their discretion, but I sugggest starting in 3rd grade or higher.

How to use the exams
As with any teaching tool, there are many ways assessment exams can enhance learning. You can grade students and gauge how much they are learning while determining what topics need more emphasis. If you are not assessing the students for a grade, then you can use them as a classroom review exercise before embarking on the next topic or as take home exams graded together in class.

How much they cost and how to get them
Teachers can purchase the assessment exam package for each course. Each exam has three randomized versions with answer keys. The prices are:

Year 1B Spanish (10 exams) $29.95
Year 2 Spanish (14 exams) $41.95
Year 3 Spanish (14 exams) $41.95

Once you order an assessment package, we will share the files with you on Google Drive (make sure you have a Google account). Please note that these are copyrighted exams and only the teacher or school who purchased them may use them. Teachers may make as many copies as needed for their students.

Here is a sample exam from : Year 1B Lessons 13 & 14